Edmund decided to come back earlier in the evening to make sure that Nalsy wasn't cooking again, at least not alone. He didn't trust her to rest as she was advised.
And he was right. As soon as he stepped inside the house, he could hear Nalsy causing a racket in the kitchen.
He walked up to the doorway, finding Nalsy limping through the kitchen, picking up a knife, then cutting the vegetables in the clumsiest way possible. Due to the cast on one arm and a brace on the other, her movements were limited barely to her fingers.
She didn't notice him as she was stuck in her daydream humming some melody.
"Bugger!" Nalsy raised her voice as the knife slipped out of her hand and fell on the floor, getting stuck at a tip in the upright position on the wooden floor, millimetres away from her foot.
"Let me help." He placed a book that he had brought for her on a table and hurried towards her.
He wondered how she managed to cook before in her current state, concluding that it must've been her sheer stubbornness.
"Arghh!" Nalsy just noticed him and screamed.
"I know I'm ugly, but Jeez." Edmund joked, pulling the knife out of the floor. He rinsed it quickly and walked up to the kitchen counter.
"I didn't hear you coming. You move like a ghost." Nalsy said, panting and trying to calm herself.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He apologised, quickly picking up the vegetables and continuing to chop them up in the same manner as Nalsy did.
"I just didn't expect you," Nalsy admitted picking up a pan.
"I believe you have a doctor's check-up tomorrow," Edmund said.
"Yes, it's in the morning", Nalsy answered, putting back her usual smile on.
"I'll go with you," Edmund informed her.
"You don't have to. I'll be fine," Nalsy said confidently.
"I just want to make sure that everything is alright," Edmund said in a softer voice. Nalsy looked up at him. She was, momentarily, stunned into silence.
She didn't have a chance to have a good look at Edmund in the past two days. The swelling on his face went down, and there was barely any bruising left, and now his chiselled face was revealed.
She couldn't look away from his hypnotising almond-shaped ocean blue eyes that looked at her from underneath a curtain of dark eyelashes. His hair was in a mess, as if wind played with it, with a single longer strand falling onto his forehead.
Even though he wasn't old, probably in his mid-20s, he looked mature for his age. Nalsy decided that it was because of his serious look as well as his newly acquired stubble. He was effortlessly and breathtakingly handsome.
He was precisely the type of man Nalsy would never have the courage to talk to. And here she was, stood in his house, speechless, with her heart pounding.
"I'm sure it's fine," Nalsy answered sternly, trying to conceal her sudden nervousness. Edmund nodded while lost in thought, furrowing his brows and pursing his lips.
"I've brought you two more books. I thought that it might be good to stock you up."
"Thank you. I've almost finished the second book, so I'll have something for later in the week."
"You almost finished two books in a day?" Edmund asked in disbelief.
"The first one was fascinating. I flew right through it. The second one is a little bit more dull but still interesting enough to keep going."
"We can return them in the morning, on the way from your appointment. You can pick more books then." Edmund said with a smile.
With Edmund's help, dinner was shortly ready. Nalsy sat down opposite Edmund and started to eat in silence. She was so focused on the soup before her that she did not realise that Edmund was looking at her.
"The soup's good," Edmund said towards her.
"You've made it, so you deserve the praise," Nalsy said, still not looking at the man in front of her.
"I followed your exact instructions, though," Edmund replied with amusement. He could sense some resentment from Nalsy, but he wasn't sure what managed to anger or upset her this time. He soon deduced that it was his presence as until Nalsy noticed him, she was happily humming under her nose.
Edmund finished his meal before Nalsy did, which gave him an extra opportunity to observe her. He leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed and crossing his leg.
Nalsy had amber-hazel brown eyes, a heart-shaped face with round cheeks, and long blonde hair tidily flowing around her shoulders.
She was slowly eating, struggling with the cast, and before long, she gave up on her meal. She was annoyed at her inability to move freely even more, which Edmund misinterpreted as him being the cause.
"I'll clean up," Edmund said sternly as Nalsy stood up. He picked her bowl with a slight frown, wondering whether she was eating this little all the time.
"Thank you," Nalsy said quietly. "If that's okay, I'll go upstairs." Edmund nodded at Nalsy, who hurriedly, as far as her limp permitted her, got back to her bedroom.